Unionization was in full force throughout the entertainment industry in 2023, particularly over at Disney. VFX artists across several in-house teamsâincluding those for the MCU and the Avatar franchiseâsuccessfully unionized, a trend thatâs now continuing in the corporationâs theme park business.
On late Saturday night, an election wrapped for Disneyland resort actors to be represented by the Actorsâ Equity Association. Out of the 1,700 employees voting, Equity needed half to be successful, but in what was called a âlandslide victory,â the threshold was exceeded with 79% of voters in favor of the union. (For hard numbers, thatâs 953 in favor v 258 against.) So long as no challenges crop up, the regional director of the NLRB will have the results certified within a week.
Equity already represents performers and stage managers for Walt Disney Worldâs Orlando resort, along with Disney Theatricals on Broadway and other national tours. While most of the Resort workforce has been unionized for years, the Characters and Parades departments were the exception prior to this vote. Their efforts were born out of performers sharing their concerns about health and safety during the early days of the pandemic, along with base wages not matching the pricey cost of living in Southern California. To further highlight what theyâre fighting for, performers put out videos about their poor conditions, such as wearing uncomfortable costumes and inflexible work policies, earlier in the week.
NEW: Disneyland workers are exposing the reality of their jobs.
âThe magic starts to fade away and youâre just left with not being able to pay rent, permanent injuries, and management who doesnât value or respect you.â
Today they start voting on a union to bring the magic back. pic.twitter.com/jgkHe75IkZ
— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) May 15, 2024
Per Equity president Kate Shindle, the first point of order for the workers group, known as Magic United, is to improve health and safety protocols, along with wages, bonuses, and working conditions. âThese workers are on the front lines of the Guest experience,â she said. âTheyâre the human beings who create lifelong memories when your kids hug a character, or when your family watches a parade roll by the castle. […] Weâre excited about the next phase, [and] will meet with representatives of the Walt Disney Company to negotiate those priorities into a first contract.â
âThis is an incredible victory, and we appreciate all the support over the past several weeks,â she continued. âThese Cast Members are both pro-union and pro-Disney, and theyâre looking forward to meeting with their employer across the bargaining table in a good faith effort to make both the work experience and the Guest experience better. […] They say that Disneyland is âthe place where dreams come true,â and for the Disney Cast Members who have worked to organize a union, their dream came true today.â
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